Nashville banker Jim Ayers will expand The Ayers Foundation Scholars Program to high school graduates in Perry County, providing students with up to $4,000 per year for four years in order to pursue additional education, according to a news release.

Ayers announced the program expansion to students at an assembly at Perry County High School this morning.

“We have had great success with the Ayers Scholars Program in Decatur and Henderson counties,” Ayers said in the release. “More than 90 percent of high school graduates there are going on to pursue some kind of additional education. Part of the reason for that success rate is that we have been able to take the cost of higher educationaway as a barrier for students and their families.”

Since its inception in 1999, The Ayers Foundation Scholars Program has awarded more than 2,000 scholarships to high school graduates at Riverside and Scotts Hill high schools.

In addition to the annual scholarships, the program will contribute funding for the high school guidance counselor, who will assist students and their families in seeking out additional grants and scholarships in order to reduce the financial burden on families.

Janet Ayers, president of The Ayers Foundation, said she expects about $130,000 in Ayers scholarship funds will be combined with nearly $600,000 in other grants and scholarships for Perry County students in the first year of the program. According to school statistics, about 68 percent of Perry County grads now pursue postsecondary education opportunities. Janet Ayers said the goal for the class of 2012 will be to bring that rate up to 88 percent.